Wimbledon 2017: Novak Djokovic takes time to chill before fizz of Manic Monday

Novak Djokovic, three-time Wimbledon champion, continued to look much more like his old self as he recovered from an early wobble to beat unpredictable Latvian Ernests Gulbis 6-4, 6-1, 7-6(2) and take his place in the fourth round for a 10th time.

It’s the business end of the tournament and instead of the early stages messily merging into the last 16 match-ups, the tournament presses the re-set button and the pause amplifies the sense of drama to come.

“It’s unlike other grand slams. Wimbledon is very unique because it’s not played on middle Sunday. So Monday is a big day for all the players, both men and women,” said Novak Djokovic who takes on France’s Adrian Mannarino.

“It is even more so for the tournament and fans. It’s one of the days where you can get probably the most quality matches, both singles and doubles, men and women, that you can have throughout the entire tournament,” said the Serb, a three-times Wimbledon winner.

Eleventh seed Tomas Berdych, beaten finalist in 2010, has an intriguing match against Austria’s rising star Dominic Thiem on Court Three and the Czech believes fans with tickets for Monday have chosen wisely.

“I would say it’s the best day of tennis that you can see,” says Berdych.

“I think if anybody asked me for a day that they want to go to the tennis, I would say the second Monday of the Wimbledon, because you see men’s, women’s, you see last 16.